04 October 2014

Oct 11 friendly Malaysia vs Philippines "postponed indefinitely "

THE friendly between the national team and the Philippines on Oct 11 has been postponed indefinitely with the Malaysia Cup final brought forward a week earlier to Nov 1 to accommodate Dollah Salleh’s request for more time with his trainees before the AFF Cup.

The Malaysia Cup quarter-final second leg, originally scheduled on Oct 17-18, has been brought forward to Oct 10-11. The semi-final first leg is slated for Oct 17-18 followed by the return leg on Oct 24-25.

FA of Malaysia (FAM) president Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah hopes the change of schedule will help Dollah prepare a solid team for the AFF Cup next month.

“Dollah will gather his trainees on Nov 2 or 3 for three matches against the Philippines, Syria and Vietnam before the competition. I want only the best from the team,” said Tengku Abdullah after chairing the national team management committee meeting in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

With the latest development, next week’s centralised training at Wisma FAM in Kelana Jaya has been cancelled.

Dollah said: “I am happy my wish has been granted. I felt it was pointless to have the trainees gather for one week and play an international match before returning to their respective clubs for the Malaysia Cup.

“I thank FAM for rescheduling the Malaysia Cup. I will have about three weeks with the players before the AFF Cup. I will scout for players and name 25 trainees for next month’s centralised training.

The former international also disclosed that Sarawak midfielder Joseph Kalang Tie has requested not to be part of the AFF Cup squad as he is getting married on Nov 15.

“It is a waste as Joseph was part of my plans for the tournament. His services will be missed but I have other options,” Dollah added. By Ajitpal Singh